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C>n<  lRE\ 

I  nited  States  Department 

DIVISION   OF   KNTOMOLOG' 

l  ill    HEX  i<  vn  (  OTTON-BOLL  »  EE1  II . 

Imlkonomu*  grandit  Boh. 

BCOPE   OF    l  III:   CIECUL  LB. 

<  n«  ni. ii  So.  0  \\;is  pablished  in  April.  1805,  and  contained  ;i  briel 
report  of  the  observations  madcap  to  that  tunc,  ami  the  conclusions 
based  on  those  observations,  concerning  the  Mexican  cotton  bolJ  weevil, 
an  insect  of  Centra] 
a  in ri  ic; i ii  origin 
\\  Inch,  during  I «9 1. 
attracted  considera- 
ble attention  in  the 
cotton  fields  of  south 
Texas.  The  m\ esti- 
■  -ii  was  continued 
daring  the  sununer, 
fall,  and  early  w  inter 
of  18U5,  especially  by 
Mi.  Schwarz,  who 
visited  Texas  in  May 
and  June  ami  again 
from  <  October  to  I  >c 
cember,  and  by  Mr. 
Townsend,  who  was 
stationed  in  the  State 
during  the  greatei  part  of  the  summer.  The  writer  went  to  Texas  in 
mber,  and  in  company  with  Mr.  Schwarz  carefully  Btndied  the 
condition  of  affairs  at  that  season  and  talked  with  many  prominent 
cotton  growers.  The  object  of  the  present  circular  is  to  lay  before  cot- 
ton planters  the  results  of  this  supplementary  investigation.  In  order 
to  make  it  complete  iii  itself,  such  facts  as  are  needed  are  repeated  from 
<  'uvular  No.  ti. 

'•i:\ik  \i.    \riM..\i:  \m  l.    \m>   METHOD   01     WORK. 

This  insect  is  a  small,  grayish  weevil,  of  the  shape  and  general 
appearance  Bhown  in  fig.  l.  a,  and  measuring  a  little  less  than  a  quar- 
ter of  an  inch  in  length.  Ir  is  (bund  in  the  cotton  fields  throughout 
the  season,  puncturing  and  laying  iU  eggs  in  1  md  bolls. 

The  larva,  of  the  Shape  and  appearance  >ho\vn  at   fig,  1.  <■.  and   ine.i-.iir- 

1 


2 

iiijj,  a  little  over  three-eighths  of  an  inch  in  length  wlicn  fall  grown, 
live  within  the  buds  and  bolls  and  feed  upon  their  interior  substance. 
Tlic  squares  attacked  usually  drop,  but  most  of  the  damaged  bolls 
reriiaiu  upon  the  plant  and  become  stunted  or  dwarfed,  except  late 
in  the  season,  when  they  either  dry  or  rot. 


DISTRIBUTION. 


Tins  insect  through  its  ravages  caused  the  abandonment  of  cotton 

culture  around  Monclova,  Mexico,  about  1862.     Two  or  three  years  ago 


Fig. 2.— Map  Bhowing  distribution  of  tlie  Mexican  cotton-boll  weevil. 

cotton  was  again  planted  in  that  vicinity,  but  the  weevil  immediately 
reappeared  and  destroyed  the  crop.  At  Matamoras  the  weevil  was 
noticed  eight  or  ten  years  ago.  About  1893  it  crossed  the  river  at 
Brownsville,  and  in  1894  was  noticed  in  the  country  around  San  Diego, 
Alice,  and  Beeville.  At  the  close  of  the  season  of  1S!I4  the  insect  occu- 
pied a  territory  extending  to  the  north  a  little  beyond  Beeville,  a  few 
miles  to  the  east  of  that  point,  and  southwest  to  the  neighborhood  ol 
Realitos,  on  the  National  Mexican  Railway.  The  greatest  damage 
seems  to  have  been  done  along  the  lower  Nueces  Biver.  During  1895, 
and  particularly  in  the  latter  part  of  the  season,  it  extended  its  range 
to  a  considerable  extent.     Toward  the  east  it  was  found  in  moderate 


abundance  along  the  vallej  ol  the  friiadalouj>e  Kivei  iil  Victoria, 
Tbomaston,  and  Cuero.  North  of  it- « »l< I  range  it  extended  to  Kenedy, 
Floresville,  and  1 1 1 : 1 1 1 \  points  in  the  conntrj  lying  between  the  latter 
place  ami  Cuero.  a  Bingle  Held  was  found  near  Ban  Antonio  which 
••mi tainri I  weevils  in  large  numbers,  ami  in  the  same  way  a  single  Held 
was  found  far  t<»  the  east  at  Wharton  in  which  the  weevils  had 
appeared  late  in  the  season.  The exael  localities  where  tin'  insect  «;!•< 
found  1 1  in  in  ^  1805  are  indicated  <>n  the  accompanying  map. 

nam  R  \i     ii  i  -  roH  \     wit   II  \i:i  is. 


The  insect  passes  the  winter  in  the  weevil  Btate.  1 1  oau  be  found  on 
the  cotton  plant  until  late  in  December,  and,  in  fact,  as  long  as  any 
portion  of  the  plant  is  green.  It  is  tun  ml  most  abundantly  iu  theearlj 
winter  bidden  bel w i«-n  the  in- 
\  olucre  ami  the  boll, and  later  it 
frequently  works  its  way  < l< >\\  n 
into  tin'  dry  and  open  bolls. 
All  the  specimens  found  l>>  M r. 
Bchwarz  in  such  Bituatious  in 
the  late  Bpriug  of  1895  were 
dead  :  but  Si  r.  Tow  nsend  found 
a  I'cH  li\  ing  in  .March.  The 
dry  boll  is  probably  not  a  fre- 
quently successful  hibernating 
place.  Judge  S.  G.  Borden,  <>t' 
Bharpsburg,  however,  writing 
under  date  of  January  27,  1896, 
states  that  the  weevil  at  that 
time  was  being  found  nearly 
every  day  in  the  dry  bolls;  bul 
this  statement  lacks  the  sig- 
nificance which  it  might  other 

w  ise    lia\  e    hail    as    bearing   oil 

thequestion  of  hibernation  from 
the  fact  that    no  heavy  frost  had  probably  occurred  up  to  that    time  at 
Bharpsburg. 
With  the  cutting  of  the  plants  or  with  the  rotting  or  drying  of  the 

bolls  as  a  result  of  host,  the  adult  weevils  leave  the  plant  and  seek 
shelter  under  rubbish  at  the  surface  of  the  ground,  or  among  weeds  and 
trash  at  the  margin  of  the  fields.     Here  they  remain  until  the  warm 

of  spring,  «  hen  they  By  to  the  tir>t  buds  on  such  volunteer  plant- 
as  may  come  up  in  the  neighborhood.    They  feed  on  these  and  lay  their 

on  the  early  squares,  ami  one.  or  perhaps  two.  generations  are 
developed  iii  such  situations,  the  number  depending  upon  the  character 
of  the  season  ami  the  date  of  cot  ton  planting.      By  the  time  the  planted 

cotton  has  grown  high  enough  to  produce  squares  the  weevils  have 
become  more  numerous,  and  those  which  have  developed  from  the  gen- 
eration on  volunteer  cotton  attack  the  planted  cotton,  ami  through 
their  punctures,  either  tor  feeding  or  egg-laying,  cause  a  wholesale 
shedding  of  the  young  squares.  It  seem-  to  he  an  almost  invariable 
rule  that  a  si  pi  a  re  m  which  a  weevil  has  laid  an  egg  drops  to  the  -round 
as  a  result  of  the  work  of  the  larva;  in  the  square  on  the  ground  the 
larva  reaches  full  growth,  transforms  to  pupa,  ami  issues  eventually  as 
a  beetle,  the  time  occupied  in  this  round  approximating  four  week-. 
Later,  as  the   bolls   form,  the  weevils  attack   them   also  and   lav   their 


ui\   batched  larva  In  young  sq 
ooarlv  full-grown  I  <    r,  pupa  in  young  boll 

picked  from  ground 


eggs  in  them,  and  the  Larvae  develop  in  the  interior  just  as  with  the 
squares.  The  bolls,  however,  do  not  drop.  Figs.  •">,  a,  and  :>,  b,  show 
the  larva-  in  the  squares,  and  fig.  3,  c,  shows  a  young  boll  cut  open  and 
the  pupa  in  its  customary  position. 

There,  is  a  constant  succession  of  generations  from  early  spring  until 
frost,  the  weevils  becoming  constantly  more  numerous  and  the  larva- 
and  pupa-  as  well.  A  single  female  will  occupy  herself  with  egg-laying 
for  a  considerable  number  of  days,  so  that  there  arises  by  duly  an  inex- 
tricable confusion  of  generations,  and  the  insect  may  be  found  in  the 
field  in  all  stages  at  the  same  time.  The  polls,  as  we  have  just  stated, 
do  not  drop  as  do  the  squares,  but  gradually  become  discolored,  usually 
on  one  side  only,  and  by  the  time  the  larva  becomes  full-grown  generally 
crack  open  at  the  tip.  While  in  a  square  one  usually  finds  but  a  sin- 
gle larva,  in  a  full-grown  boll  as  many  as  twelve  have  been  found.     In 

any  case,  how- 
ever, the  hatch- 
ing of  a  single 
larva  in  a  boll 
results  in  the  de- 
struction of  the 
boll  to  such  an 
extent  that  its 
fiber  is  useless. 
Where  no  seri- 
ous frost  occurs 
in  Dec  ember, 
the  insects  all, 
or  nearly  all, 
reach  maturity 
and  enter  hiber- 
nating quarters, 

although  larva-  have  been  found  on  into  .January  at  Sharpsburg.  When- 
ever a  heavy  frost  comes  in  this  month,  or  before,  the  observations  of 
last  fall  show  that  those  insects  which  have  not  reached  the  beetle 
stage  are  nearly  all  killed.  From  this  fact  it  follows  that  the  insect 
will  probably  not  prove  as  injurious  in  other  portions  of  the  cotton  belt 
as  it  is  in  southern  Texas. 

It  was  found  during  the  latter  part  of  1895  that  the  weevil  was  present 
in  a  number  of  localities  in  which  it  was  not  known 
by  the  planters  themselves  to  occur.  It  is  impor- 
tant that  every  planter  who  lives  in  or  near  the 
region  which  we  have  mapped  out  should  be  able 
to  discover  the  weevil  as  soon  as  it  makes  its 
appearance  in  his  fields.  Where  a  field  is  at  all 
badly  infested  the  absence  of  bloom  is  an  indica- 
tion of  the  presence  of  the  insect.  In  the  early 
part  of  the  season  the  weevils  attack  the  squares 
first,  and  these  wilt  and  drop  oil".  A  field  may  be 
in  full  blossom,  and  as  soon  as  the  insect  spreads 
well  through  it  hardly  a  blossom  will  be  seen. 
This  dropping  alone,  however,  is  not  a  sufficient 
indication  of  the  weevil's  presence.  Squares  are  fm.s 
shed  from  other  causes,  but  if  a  sufficient  number 
of  fallen  squares  are  cut  open  the  cause  will  be 
apparent.  The  characteristic  larva  of  the  weevil  will  be  quite  readily 
recognizable  on  comparison  with  the  figures  which  we  publish  herewith. 


Fig.  4.— Mature  I  mil  cut  opcu  at  left,  Bhowing  full-grown  larva ;  tin-  one  at  the 
right  iidi  cut  iiinl  shovt  mil;  feeding  punctures  and  ovipositiou  marks. 


i 


^w 


—Late  fall  boll  show- 
bow  beetles  hid* 
i «  een  boll  and  involucre. 


5 

As  staled  above,  tin'  bolls  do  not  drop.  The  punctures  made  i>\  the 
weevils in  feeding, howevei,aie comparatively  characteristic,  and  where 
a  boll  is  discolored  and  baa  begun  to  crack  nl  the  tip  the  larva  oi  the 
I  hi  p.  i  can  be  st  tii  w  i'  bouFI  i  (Hi!)ic  mi  cutting  it  open.  Late  in  the  Beason 
the  weevils  tbemse  veswill  be  found  between  the  involucre  and  the  boll, 
as  shown  in  fig.  5,  or  in  their  ubsence  the  feeding  marks  and  the  yel 
low,  granular  excrement  which  collects  iu  the  involucre  at  the  base  of 
tin'  lioll  arc  excellent  unheal  ions, 

POP1  LAB    N  \Mf.s. 

In  south  Texas,  among  Spanish  speakiug  people,  the  insect  is  gener- 

all)  kuown  as tl picudo,1  a  descriptive  name  w  hich  refers  ti>  the  snout 

in  beak  <>i  the  insect.  English  Bpeaking  planters  general Ij  referred  to 
the  insect  at  first,  as  "the  sharpshooter,  a  term  winch  for  man}  years 
lias  heen  applied  to  any  insect  which  causes  through  it--  punctures  the 
Bhedding  ol  the  squares  oi  the  rotting  ol  the  bolls.  A  s  there  are  sev- 
eral native  insects  that  are  commonly  called  sharps] ters,  ami  whidh, 

though  injuiious,  aie  by  mi  means  t<>  he  compared  with  tliis  insect,  it 
becomes  necessai  y  to  discourage  in  c\  ery  waj  the  use  of  the  word  sharp- 
shooter as  applied  to  this  weevil.  This  was  attempted  iu  the  first  edition 
of  the  ci  i  cnlai  by  illustrating  one  of  the  commonest  ot  the  insects  ordi 
nai  ih  termed  sharpshooters,  calling  attention  to  the  radical  differences 
winch  exist  between  it  ami  the  weevil  under  consideration.  The  adop 
lion  nt  the  term  ••  .Mexican  <•  'tt  mi  boll  weevil  "for  the  new  pest  is  recom- 
mended. The  tei  m  sharpshooter  is  now  much  less  generally  applied  to 
the  weevil  than  it  was  at  first.  Planters  generally  now  referto  it  as 
the  hull  weevil,  or  the  Mexican  weevil,  or  the  Mexican  hull  weevil. 

PARASITES    LOT)    NATURAL    ENEMIES. 

It  is  sate  to  say  that  little  assistance  will  he  derived  from  the  work 
of  natural  enemies  and  parasites  upon  this  insect.  Of  the  former  none 
nt'  any  importance  have  heen  found.  Several  parasites,  however,  have 
heen  found  to  attack  it.  and  in  one  or  two  localities  sonic  little  good 
has  resulted  from  their  work.  They  have  onlj  heen  abundant,  how- 
ever, late  in  the  season,  alter  the  weevil  has  completed  its  damage  for 
the  year  and  at  a  time  when  a  minimum  of  good  can  he  accomplished 
bj  the  destruction  of  the  larva.  The  majority  of  the  weevils  in  a  given 
field  fail  to  hibernate  successfully, being  killed  bycold  weather  or  some 
other  cause,  so  that  the  work  of  parasites  at  this  time  does  not  count. 
Careful  estimates,  however,  show  that  from  15  to  20  per  cent  ot'  the 
weevil  larva?  iii  fallen  squares  in  November  at  Beeville  and  Kenedy 
were  destroyed  by  parasites.  There  is  a  hare  possibility  that  in  the 
original  home  of  the  weevil  south  .Mexico  and  some  Central  American 
States,  as  well  as  certain  of  the  West  Indies)  more  efficacious  parasites 
could  he  loiiiid,  hut  this  possibility  is  hardly  sufficiently  strong  to 
warrant  the  expense  ot'  a  search  expedition. 

REMEDIES. 

In  considering  the  matter  of  remedies   we  must  start   with  the  state 
incut  that  experience  has  shown  that  none  of  the  general  applications 
of  insecticides  will  he  of  the  slightest  value  against  this  species.     There 
are  measures,  however,  which  cotton  planters  may  adopt  and  which,  it' 
carried  out  generally  at  the  right  time,  will  postpone  the  appearance  of 


the  insect  in  injurious  numbers  for  one  or  two  generations,  even  if  they 
will  not  prevent  an  undue  multiplication  of  the  species.    These  measures 

are  directed  against  the  over  wintered  weevils  and  the  larva-  of  the  first 
generation,  since  where  the  insect  has  once  become  numerous  nothing 
can  be  done  to  save  the  crop  from  practical  destruction. 

We  have  noticed  that  the  weevils  first  appear  in  spring  among 
clusters  of  young  squares  on  the  most  advanced  cotton  plants.  This 
suggests  the  possibility  of  trapping  these  earliest  beetles  by  means  of 
a  very  few  cotton  plants  especially  grown  for  this  purpose.  These 
plants  must  be  grown  at  convenient  points,  must  be  protected  from 
frost,  and  forced  by  watering,  so  that  they  will  branch  out  and  acquire 
buds  even  in  advance  of  the  volunteer  cotton.  The  weevils  which  issue 
from  hibernating  quarters  on  the  first  warm  days  will  be  attracted  to 
these  plants  at  once,  and  can  be  easily  collected  and  killed,  if  the  plants 
are  examined  daily  until  the  cotton  in  the  fields  has  become  of  some 
size.  It  is  not  likely  that  this  plan  will  appeal  to  the  average  cotton 
planter,  but  we  are  convinced  that  much  good  can  be  done  by  its  gen- 
eral adoption. 

The  fact  that  the  spring  generation  develops  only  upon  volunteer 
cotton  has  suggested  the  possibility  that  the  insect  will  not  spread 
beyond  the  region  where  volunteer  cotton  will  grow  in  spring,  but 
unfortunately  this  possibility  is  by  no  means  absolutely  to  be  relied 
upon.  Nevertheless,  the  destruction  of  such  volunteer  plants  as  come 
up  in  corn  fields  and  in  abandoned  fields  which,  the  previous  year, 
were  planted  to  cotton,  can  not  be  too  strongly  recommended,  for  it  is 
a  matter  of  observation  that  the  shade  afforded  by  the  corn  or  the  rank- 
growing  weeds  which  come  up  in  abandoned  fields  is  especially  favor- 
able to  the  development  of  the  weevils. 

While  the  plants  arc  young,  and  where  labor  is  as  cheap  as  it  is  in 
south  Texas,  a  great  deal  of  good  can  be  accomplished  by  picking  and 
burning  the  fallen  squares,  and  if  this  is  done  promptly  a  large  number 
of  the  insects  will  be  destroyed.  It  should  be  done  at  least  twice,  at 
intervals  of  three  weeks,  during  the  period  while  the  plants  are  small. 
As  soon  as  the  plants  begin  to  branch  out,  however,  this  method  becomes 
impracticable,  on  account  of  the  difficulty  of  finding  the  squares  on  the 
ground. 

The  idea  of  picking  the  affected  bolls  during  the  cotton  picking  was 
suggested  in  the  first  edition  of  the  circular.  It  was  thought  that  the 
affected  bolls  could  be  so  readily  recognized  that  many  thousands  of 
the  insects  could  be  destroyed  by  the  cotton  pickers  by  picking  these 
affected  bolls  and  carrying  them  away  in  a  separate  receptacle  to  be 
burned.  The  amount  of  extra  labor  involved  m  this  operation,  how- 
ever, would  be  very  considerable,  and  the  affected  bolls  in  many 
instances  are  not  to  be  recognized  at  a  glance. 

These  measures,  aside  from  the  last  one, 'together  with  early  planting 
and  clean  cultivation,  comprise  all  that  can  be  done  to  save  the  crop  of 
1896.  It  is  obvious,  however,  that  no  general  adoption  ot  these  simple 
measures  will  be  brought  about  this  year,  and  that  the  probabilities 
are  strong  that  the  insect  will  be  quite  as  injurious  as  in  1895,  if  not 
more  so.  A  good  first  crop  will  probably  be  secured  if  the  climatic 
conditions  are  favorable,  but  the  top  crop  is  sure  to  be  destroyed  by  the 
weevils.  This  destruction,  judging  from  the  experience  of  the  past  two 
years,  will  probably  take  place  in  September  in  most  of  the  localities 
where  the  weevils  were  present  in  1895,  and  at  this  time  the  prospective 
loss  of  the  top  crop  will  at  once  become  evident  from  the  absence  of 
bloom. 


The  prospect  of  anj  further  picking  of  cotton  beiug  thus  rendered 
so  extreme!)  small,  a  suggestion  i^  obtained  a^  to  whal  i^  perhaps, 
after  all.  t  hf  most  practical  waj  of  reducing  the  numbers  of  the  wee\  il 
ami  Becnring  Approximate  immunity  for  the  summei  of  1897,  ami  that 
in  in  tin-  rutting  down  ami  burning  of  the  plants  a  I  a  time  when  it 
lici  oiues  evident  thai  the  cotton  yet  to  be  gathered  n  ill  be  verj  small 
in  quantity,  in  manj  localities  during  the  past  sum  met  tin>  could 
have  been  done  to  very  great  advantage  as  earlj  as  the  beginning  oi 
October,  and  several  large  growers  of  cotton  in  Nueces  and  Duval 
count  it's  have  decided  to  undertake  t  ln^  means  next  year.  The  success 
of  tins  measure  "ill  naturally  depend  upon  uniform  it)  oi  action  among 
tin-  planters  oi  a  given  region,  and  the  difficulty  of  securiug  tln>  uni 
formity  is  the  main  argument  to  be  used  against  it.  Onlj  about  hall 
the  «ottou  in  Duval  County,  for  example,  seems  to  be  grown  by  the 
proprietors  of  the  land;  the  remainder  is  grown  bj  renters,  who  will 
be  not  at  all  disposed  to  cut  down  their  plants  bo  long  a>  a  chance 
remains  of  picking  a  bandful  of  cotton.  In  this  waj  the  plants  iu 
many  fields  will  doubtless  be  lefl  Btanding  until  toward  the  cud  of 
I  December. 

Could  anything  like  uniformity  '»<•  secured,  either  by  legislation  01 
otherwise,  it  is  in  thi^  fall  destruction  of  the  cotton  thai  our  besl  hope 

I  i(  B    it  the  present  outlook  ;  ami    in  t  In  s  connect  ion  the  further  8Ugges 

tion  should  be  made  that  not  all  the  plants  in  any  given  Held  should 
be  destroyed  in  this  way.  All  the  insects  which  are  in  the  larval  and 
pupal  condition  will  be  destroyed  when  t  he  cotton  is  burned,  but  those 

which  may  be  in  the  beetle  stage  will,  by  flight,  escape  alive.  It',  there 
tore,  a  certain  1  umber  of  the  plants  are  lefl  Btanding  in  every  field, 
these  plants  will  attract  the  remaining  beetles,  which  "ill  settle  upon 
them,  so  that  they  may  readilj  be  collected  day  after  day  ami  deal  roved. 

If  the  plants  are  all  cut  down  and  burned,  the  beetles  will  spread  I. it 
and  wide:  but  if  a  few  are  left  Btanding  in  this  way,  the  weevils  will 
concentrate  upon  them  in  Mich  a  way  that  they  can  lie  easily  handled. 

Where  there  is  obvionsh  n  certain  amount  of  cotton  still  to  be  gath- 
ered after  the  early  part  of'October,  it  may  be  an  object  to  postpone 
this  cutting  down  and  burning  of  the  plants.  We  have  found  that  the 
Weevil  continues  to  breed  and  may  be  found  in  the  bolls  in  all  Stages 
Up  to   the  time  of  the   flrsl    frOSl       The  Cutting  and   burning  will   then 

accomplish  a  considerable  amount  of  good,  even  if  done  during  Novem- 
ber, although  October  would  be  tar  better. 

Prom  the  present  outlook,  therefore,  the  best  hope  which  the  cotton 
planters  in  the  affected  region  will  have  lor  the  future  will  be  in  follow 
ing  this  last-described  method  in  the  fall  of  1896,  and  the  more  thor- 
oughly and  uniformly  (and,  in  fact,  the  earlier  this  is  done  in  any  given 
locality  the  greater  will  be#the  chance  for  a  good  crop  the  following 
year.  Unfortunately,  after  talking  with  many  cotton  planters  in  this 
region,  we  are  by  no  means  >ure  that  the  plan  \\  ill  be  at  all  generally 

followed,  for  the  reasons  BUggested  above;  and  B8  the  prospects  ,,1  these 
planters  themselves,  a-  well  as  the  owners  of  cotton  plantations  in 
adjoining  regions  as  yet  nninfested,  will  depend  almost  entirely  on  the 
general  adoption  of  this  plan  or  some  better  one  which  ma\  yet  be  dis 
covered,  it  becomes  necessary  to  look  forward  to  the  enforcement  of 
remedial  work  by  legislation. 

It  will  be  greatly  to  the  interest  of  all  growers  of  cotton  in  the  prolific 
district  lying  to  the  northeast  of  the  region  at  present  infested  to  urge 
the  passage  of  an  act  during  the  >ession  of  1896-97  which  will  bring 
about  tin'  enforcement  of  remedial  work  in  1897.     This  act  should  pro 


UNIVERSITY  OF  FLORIDA 

8       •  IIIIIIIIIIIWH 

8  In,,l,lll,3  1262  09216  4556 

vide  for  the  appointment  of  commissioners  m  each  county  upon  the 
application  of  a  certain  number  of  the  citizens  of  that  county.  These 
commissioners  should  be  empowered  to  enforce  remedial  work,  to  levy 
penalties,  or  to  have  the  work  done  by  their  own  agents,  the  cost  to  be 
assessed  upon  the  property*  Jt  will  he  well  to  let  this  law  have  a  wide 
bearing'  and  not  to  confine  its  application  to  this  particular  insect,  but 
cover  all  injurious  insects,  in  case  of  future  emergencies  of  a  similar 
nature.  Such  a  law  should  be  passed  in  every  State  in  the  Union. 
Though  it  might  remain  inoperative  for  years,  its  application  would  be 
available  in  case  of  any  sudden  emergency,  such  as  the  introduction 
from  a  foreign  country  of  a  new  injurious  insect,  or  the  sudden  multi- 
plication and  spread  of  any  one  of  our  native  species. 

SUMMARY   OF   REMEDIKS. 

(1)  Trapping  over- wintered  beetles  by  means  of  a  few  early  planted 
cotton  plants. 

(2)  Destruction  of  volunteer  plants  in  corn  fields  or  abandoned  fields. 
(.'!)  ricking  fallen  squares  as  fast  as  practicable,  from  the  time  the 

squares  are  formed  on  the  plant. 

(4)  Cutting  and  burning  the  cotton  stalks  as  early  in  the  fall  as  prac- 
ticable, and,  if  possible,  plowing  the  cotton  fields  at  the  same  time. 

(5)  Trapping  the  last  weevils  in  the  field  by  means  of  a  few  plants 
left  standing. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  tbis  insect  is  the  most  serious  enemy  to 
the  cotton  plant  with  which  cotton  growers  in  this  country  have  had 
to  contend,  and  every  effort  should  be  made  to  prevent  its  farther 
spread.  The  writer  believes  that  this  can  be  accomplished,  if.  by  con- 
certed action  of  the  planters,  the  recommendations  just  made  are  carried 
out  throughout  the  infested  region. 

L.  O.   BOWAED, 

Entomologist. 
Approved: 

Chas.  W.  DABNEY,  Jr., 

Assistant  Secretary. 

Washington,  l>.  0.,  February  12,  1896. 


